Solheim Cup Facts, History, Past Winners, And Format - All You Need To Know

The Solheim Cup is one of the most anticipated golfing events on the calendar, pitting the USA and Europe's best female players against each other every two years across three days. Ahead of the 2024 clash at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, here are 15 things you might not have known about the Solheim Cup, as well as all the information on the event's history and format.

Solheim Cup Facts

1. The Solheim Cup is a biennial women’s tournament played between the USA and Europe. It is the women’s equivalent of the Ryder Cup.

2. It is named after the Norwegian-American golf club manufacturers Karsten and Louise Solheim. The founders of the PING brand were instrumental in its development.

3. To begin with, the Solheim Cup was held on even numbered years as the Ryder Cup took place on odd-numbered years. However, the 2001 Ryder Cup was postponed until 2002 after the 9/11 attacks, so the Solheim Cup switched to odd numbers from 2003 to avoid clashing.

4. The first Solheim Cup was held in 1990 at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club in Florida. The USA, captained by Kathy Whitworth, cruised to victory by 11.5 to 4.5 points.

5. The global Covid pandemic in 2020 forced another postponement of the Ryder Cup. Its next tournament was held in 2021, the same year as the Solheim Cup. After the two were played in the same year again in 2023, the Solheim Cup reverted to even-numbered years from 2024.

6. Each team has 12 players. Team Europe comprises the two highest-ranked players in the LET Solheim Cup rankings, the top six eligible players in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings and four captain’s picks.

7. Team USA is selected from the top seven players on the US Solheim Cup points list, the two highest-ranked eligible players in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings and three captain’s picks.

8. Like the Ryder Cup, there are 28 matches in total played over three days of match play with one point awarded for a win and 0.5 points awarded to each team when a match is halved. The team that reaches 14.5 points first wins. If the teams are locked at 14-14 after each match has been played, the team that won the previous Solheim Cup retains the trophy.

9. After 18 editions through 2023, the USA leads Europe 10-7 - with the most recent edition ending in a tie and Europe retaining.

10. The tournament has never been held at the same venue twice.

11. The European countries that have hosted the event are Scotland, Wales, Sweden, Ireland, Germany and, for the first time in 2023, Spain. Of those, Scotland has held the event the most times, on three. The 2026 venue will be in the Netherlands.

12. Dame Laura Davies holds the record for most Solheim Cup appearances with 12.

13. Davies is also the record points scorer in the Solheim Cup, with 25.

14. Up to and including the 2023 tournament, there has only ever been two hole-in-ones at the Solheim Cup, achieved by Team Europe’s Anna Nordqvist in 2013 and Europe's Emily Kristine Pedersen in 2023.

15. The trophy is made from Waterford Crystal with a mahogany wood base.

Solheim Cup Past Winners

USA leads Europe 10-7 in the list of outright Solheim Cup past winners, with the 2023 version ending in a fascinating tie. Throughout the history of the event, USA triumphed in many of the early meetings. However, Europe has enjoyed more success in recent years.

What Is The Solheim Cup Format?

The Solheim Cup format is made up of fourball matches, foursomes matches, and singles matches. Over the first two days, there will be a morning session and an afternoon session. In each four-match session, either foursomes or fourballs will be played. Whichever format was not played in the morning takes place in the afternoon. The home captain decides which way around the formats take place. 

Each match is worth one point. If a team wins outright, they earn a full point, no matter the margin of victory. If the score is level after 18 holes, it is a half-point each.

The same is true on Singles Sunday, when all 12 players go one-on-one over a maximum of 18 holes for the right to earn their team a point. The first team to reach 14.5 points wins the Solheim Cup. If the overall score ends 14-14 (as it did in 2023) then the team who last won the Cup outright retains the trophy.